WHAT’S SHAKIN’

Bench Press
Mike Hopkins, the assistant coach for the Syracuse University men’s basketball team, was asked in mid-November if Orange sophomores Dion Waiters and C.J. Fair could do for this year’s team what Kris Joseph and Scoop Jardine did for the 2009-’10 squad. During that season, Joseph and Jardine were the best one-two punch off the bench in the country and helped an Orange team led by Wes Johnson and Andy Rautins reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

“I think we’ve got five Scoops and Krisses,” Hopkins said. “Does that make sense?” It does now. Thanks to perhaps the deepest bench in the country, SU is off to a 10-0 start for the third consecutive season and was ranked No. 1 in the nation in the Dec. 12 Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls.

To put it another way, the Orange is No. 1 in large part because of its No. 6, No. 7, No. 8, No. 9 and No. 10: Wait ers, Fair, junior forward James Southerland, sophomore center Baye Keita and freshman guard Michael Carter-Williams.

“The overall depth {between 2009-’10 and this season}? Not even close,” Hopkins said. “To be able to have that second wave of attack is a huge advantage for us.”

The Orange bench has outscored the opposing team’s bench in nine of 10 games this season; the only exception was Stanford. And SU’s bench has outscored the opposing team’s bench by an average of 22.3 points per game (36.7 to 14.4). The Orange’s overall margin of victory is 22.8 points per game (80.1 to 57.3).

Of the 200 available minutes in a college basketball game (five players and a 40-minute game), SU’s starters—guards Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche, forwards Kris Joseph and Rakeem Christ-mas, and center Fab Melo—are averaging a combined 108 minutes per game.

The top five players off the bench are averaging 85.5 minutes per game. But even at 22.5 minutes less per game, the overall stats for the bench players are very close to the starters (see accompanying chart). That’s why St. Rose coach Brian Beaury, after the Orange’s 87-69 rout of the Golden Knights in a Nov. 8 exhibition, described SU as “Noah’s Ark: They’ve got two of everything.”

“Yep, that’s exactly what it is,” Joseph said. “We have great guards, forwards, our centers are great and that’s what’s going to keep us going throughout the whole year. Our bench is going to be just as big as the starters and the starters are going to be just as big as the bench. No man is greater than the other, we all play the same exact role, and we’re all here for the same exact reasons, and that’s to win basketball games.”

In SU’s most recent game, an 85-50 blowout of George Washington on Saturday, Dec. 10, at the Carrier Dome, shooting guard Waiters celebrated his 20th birthday with a team high and career high 19 points (on 8-for-11 shooting), with six steals. Point guard Carter-Williams dished out eight assists—the most by an SU player this season—with no turnovers as he played as many minutes as starting point guard Jardine (18).

It was the latest in a string of games in which the subs had a major impact. Southerland tied his career high with 19 points in an 84-48 rout of Eastern Michigan Nov. 29; Fair and Waiters were both named to the all-tournament team of the NIT Season Tip-Off as the Orange defeated Virginia Tech Nov. 23 and Stanford Nov. 25; and Keita tallied a career high 14 points in a romp over Albany Nov. 15.

“It’s nice to be recognized as a key part of the team, since you come off the bench,” Fair noted. “Usually all eyes are on them {the starters}, they get all the glory. But when you come off the bench, you try to pick up where they left off, or if they’re slacking, you try to get the team going.”

Following the George Washington game, Waiters was asked about the competition between the starters and the bench during practice. The gleam in his eyes said it all.

“Sometimes, we kind of get into fights,” he said, grinning. “But it’s all love. You’re making me better and I’m making you better, and at the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about. That’s what keeps us motivated, and that’s what keeps them motivated. Because we’re coming for them, and they’re coming for us. We’re a family, and we kill each other in practice, but then we want to come out here and take it out on the other guys.”

Orange Slices: With final exams this week, the Orange won’t play again until Saturday, Dec. 17, when it has its first road game outside of New York state. SU will travel to Raleigh, N.C., to face North Carolina State (6-3) at 6:30 p.m. (ESPN2).

The last time the Orange was ranked No. 1 was in March 2010 before the final week of the regular season. SU defeated St. John’s but lost at Louisville in the regular-season finale.

“We have a week of different practice hours and are really going to have to work hard to keep ourselves on an upslope going into North Carolina State,” Coach Jim Boeheim said. “It is our first road game and a really good place to play, a tough place to play. They are a team that could have won all the games that they lost. It’s going to be a great test for us.”

—Matt Michael

Here Come The Grooms

Despite lingering clouds, Oct. 14 turned out to be a beautiful day, when about 25 guests gathered on the steps of City Hall to witness the marriage of Frederick Marvin and Ernst Schuh. At 2 p.m., City Hall doors parted and the happy couple emerged, Marvin resplendently attired in a formal midnight blue jacket, pleated white dress shirt and black bow tie. Schuh, equally elegant, was decked out in a forest green jacket, paisley vest and bow tie. Both wore black trousers and a white rose boutonniere on their lapels, and each wore a ring of star sapphire stones from Sri Lanka, designed especially for their wedding here and exchanged before the ceremony.

The officiant, Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner, stood between the pair to finally make the couple’s union legal according to New York state law. What made this wedding exceptional is that Marvin, age 91, and Schuh, age 89, have been together for 52 years, and could finally tie the knot. “We learned that New York City Mayor Bloomberg recently married a couple, and we said, ‘Why not us?’” declared a jubilant Marvin. “So we asked Mayor Miner if she would marry us, and she said yes.”

“I have received a flood of emails, phone calls and messages on my Blackberry about the wedding,” admitted the mayor, adding that to date more than 98 singlesex licenses have been issued since July.

The ceremony proceeded like any other, with the exchanging of vows, followed by Miner announcing the couple legally married. Media jockeyed around the newlyweds taking photos and videos, and microphones were thrust in front of the two to memorialize the event. “We are very happy,” said Schuh as he smiled lovingly at his longtime partner. The newlyweds, who also maintain an apartment in Vienna, had their union legalized there on June 22 by obtaining from the Registry Office in Vienna a “Partnerschaftsurkunde.” This certificate bestows by law in Austria the same equal rights as a marriage document.

What the well-wishers at City Hall as well as the general public didn’t know was that the ceremony was at risk just a few days before. Schuh blacked out twice with no apparent cause. Marvin, justifiably concerned, contacted their cardiologist who instructed them to immediately head for the hospital, whereupon a pacemaker was installed to regulate Schuh’s heartbeat. The next day, he was good as new and the wedding went on as planned.

But this wasn’t the only time Marvin and Schuh faced a near-disaster. Some years ago an automobile accident put the two in the hospital for six weeks with individual injuries. What was most troubling is that the attending physician told Marvin that an injury to his hand was so severe that it would have to be amputated. For a professional pianist this news was catastrophic.

Not willing to accept the diagnosis, the pair searched until they finally found a doctor who successfully treated the damaged hand with therapy. Another time, Marvin slipped on ice in Vienna and damaged his arm. Again, all was OK. Back in Syracuse, Schuh fell on the dark steps at a Carousel Center movie theater, and severely hurt his arm. He still does not have complete mobility.

The newly married couple has weathered other catastrophes, large and small, during their 52-year relationship but the focus has always been on their devotion and love for each other. Their odyssey began in 1959 in the Abbey of St. Florian, when each was there to view the grave of composer Anton Bruckner. At the time, Marvin had been performing all over Europe and stopped at the monastery on his way to give another performance in Vienna. Schuh, an opera critic in Vienna, was also on his way back to the city, and planned to take the train. Marvin, who was driving, offered, “Why not come with me?” And so it began.

It is no surprise that the two were attracted to one another. An early photograph shows the pair as young, handsome and debonair men of the world: real movie-star types.

Marvin and Schuh make a formidable couple, both personally and professionally. Schuh, who became the pianist’s concert manager, was responsible for booking engagements for numerous concerts all over Europe and the United States, even arranging two six-week tours in India. Over the years Marvin’s artistry earned him untold accolades wherever he performed, thanks to Schuh’s masterful arrangements in major cities.

Marvin spent some time in Spain, researching more than 200 works by 18thcentury Spanish composer Padre Antonio Soler. His efforts as a musicologist garnered him the honor of Knight Commander of the “Orden del Merito Civil” from the Spanish government, complete with an official medal and a photo of himself with artist Salvador Dali, who was in attendance for the presentation. While Marvin may have been the public figure and the recipient of so many well-deserved accolades, it must be mentioned that his notoriety was also a result of his manager creatively toiling in the wings to make the world aware of Marvin’s extraordinary musical gifts.

In 1968 Marvin received a call from Howard Boatwright, then dean of the School of Music at Syracuse University, asking him to become professor and artist-in-residence at the college. Always willing to take on a new challenge, after discussion with Schuh, the two moved to Syracuse, ostensibly to stay for a year, but Marvin remained on the SU faculty for 22 years, retiring in 1990. During that time the couple purchased a home, and have lived here ever since.

The pianist’s stint in Syracuse added yet another chapter to his career. Schuh continued to arrange performances in the United States and abroad as Marvin took on a group of talented students. While here, Schuh arranged 35 concerts at what is now Setnor Auditorium. He also played for the opening of the Civic Center and appeared with the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra.

In between the pair has served as hosts for many soirees at their home in the Westcott area. For many years, at Christmastime, invited guests were treated to Marvin’s music, some of his Padre Antonio Soler’s works or the classic composers, Beethoven, Shubert or Chopin, for example. Driving by the house, one could not know the treasures that were inside. An addition to the back was built as a stage that housed two Hamburg Steinway grand pianos, the ceiling pitched to create an acoustically sensitive area. A large bay window overlooking the back yard offers a view of the menagerie of animals that came to visit, expecting Schuh to feed them, which he obliges.

Above the living room/auditorium, a balcony was fashioned to accommodate more guests. The house, always resplendent with priceless artifacts from around the world, was specially decorated with a tree adorned with unusual Viennese ornaments, as well as other art pieces of the season. After the musical treat, guests were ushered into the dining room, to feast on holiday delicacies prepared by Schuh, an amazing chef.

This is where the couple’s affection for one another was patently visible. “Didn’t Ernst do a wonderful job decorating the house?” Marvin would gush, “and he worked so hard preparing such a beautiful table for your enjoyment.” Schuh, in turn, when the food was already set out during Marvin’s performance, would stand along the side of the room, marveling with obvious love at his partner’s playing.

For their wedding reception, guests were regaled with an afternoon of music and conviviality much like the holiday events. Marvin opened with a Beethoven piano sonata, followed by two Schubert works sung by Matthieu van der Meer. A Mozart sonata for flute was next, per formed by Albrecht Diem. Marvin accompanied both on the piano, finishing the program with a rousing Chopin Ballade, received with a standing ovation. During the concert, a trio of deer, a mother and her two babies, ambled into the yard to take in the festivities.

Like Marvin and Schuh, Van de Meer and Diem have also recently married. The ceremony took place in Amsterdam, Diem’s original home. The two are now on the SU faculty: der Meer teaches Latin and Diem teaches Renaissance history. Interestingly enough, the two couples maintain apartments close to each other in Vienna.

Debbie Sydow, president of Onondaga Community College, and her husband Harry were among the guests at the reception. “Frederick Marvin donated his music library to the college in 2002,” she said. “I am delighted by their union celebrated in this intimate setting, listening to a world-class concert.” Guests were then invited to the dining room to feast on a magnificent array of dishes prepared by “chef Schuh” along with a Viennese wine tasting.

Looking back at the ceremony that joined them together after more than a memorable five decades together, Schuh reflected: “We’re just like everyone else.” Marvin concurred with a nod and smile to his spouse.

—Lorraine Smorol